Coin-controlled device for vending-machines.



H. S. MILLS. 00m CONTROLLED DEVICE FOR VENDING MACHINES.

APPLIOATION FILED OUT 5, 1911.

1,014,320, Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

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H. S. MILLS. COIN CONTROLLED DEVICE FOR VENDING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED 00115, 1911.

4 320 Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

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COIN CONTROLLED DEVICE FOR VENDING MACHINES. APPLIOATIOH FILED OCT- 5, 1911.

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HERBERT S.'1VIILLS, OF CHIC'AGO, ILLINOIS.

COIN-CONTROLLED DEVICE FOR VENDING-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

Application filed October 5, 1911. Serial No. 653,067.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT S. MILLS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Coin- Controlled Devices for vending Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a novel construction of coin-controlled device for use on vending machines in preventing such a machine from being operated to deliver merchandise by the insertion into the device of other than a proper coin of predetermined denomination. My improved device, moreover, is preferably adapted to serve as a coin-detector by exposing to view the last-inserted coin or substitute therefor, thereby to enable attempted fraudulent use of the machine to be detected.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows my improved device by a face vlew; Fig. 2 is a View of the same with the front plate removed to display the parts covered by it; Fig. 3 is a rear view of the device, with the back removed to display the parts covered by it and showing the mechanism in its normal condition adapting it to be operated through the medium of an inserted proper coin to release the delivery-operating means; Fig. 4 is a view like that presented in Fig. 3, but showing the condition of the mechanism after it has been operated through the medium of the inserted coin; Fig. 5 is a similar but broken view showing the condition of the mechanism after the plunger-bar for actuating the delivery means has been depressed; Fig. 6 is a section on line 6, Fig. 3; Fig. 7 is a section on line 7, Fig. 3, and Fig. 8 a broken section on line 8, Fig. 7, to show a spring-stop in the path of the coin to the glass-covered coin-display opening.

All the operating parts are supported on a plate 9 having a face-plate 10 screwed against and spaced from one of its sides and a shield 11, of, the preferred form in cross-section represented in Fig. 6, screwed against its opposite side to house the mechanism therein and form therewith the casing of the device. The plate 10 (Fig. 1) has formed in its upper left-hand corner an annular coin-insertion opening 12 and below its longitudinal center a horizontal slot 13, alining with which is a glass-covered circular coin-display opening 14:, for conspicu ous lodgment of the last-inserted coin or substitute therefor used to operate the machine and serving the detector purpose hereinafter explained. In an elongated rectangular recess 15 formed in the back of the face-plate to extend between the observationopening 14 and slot 13 is fastened at one end aflat spring 16 (Fig. 8) having its free end bent to extend at a right-angle as a stop 17 projecting into the path of a coin to the opening 14 to yieldingly obstruct its progress in that direction while preventing its return. On the outer face of the plate 9-are formed, by flanges cast thereon (see Fig. 2), a coin-chute section 18 terminating adjacent to the inner end of the slot 13, and a horizontal guide-way 19 for a springretracted pusher-finger 2O tapering at its inner end and carrying on its opposite end a stud 21 projecting forwardly through the slot 13 to afford a handle by which to reciprocate the finger to push an inserted coin in its path and cause it to operate the device as hereinafter explained. The flanges on the outer face of the plate 9 also form the downwardly-deflected discharge-end or section 18 of the coin-chute which may 0 en into the casing of the vending-machine not shown); this discharge-end containing an inclined slot 22, which extends into the path of the coin-discharge. Another inclined slot 23 is formed through the plate 9 to extend into the path of the points of a starwheel 24, the periphery of which is shown concavely arc-shaped between the points, and which is journaled on the plate in position to cause the points to project also into the coin-path between the chute-sections 18 and 18 The journal of the wheel 2 1 carries to rotate on the opposite rear face of the plate 9 a locking-wheel 25 (Figs. 3 to 5) having deep notches 26 at uniform distances apart in its periphery. Above the wheel 25 is pivotally fastened at one end, to the plate, a spring-pressed finger 27 having a notch 28 in its free end to cooperate with the correspondingly-notched adjacent upper end of a lever 29 for locking and unlocking the wheel 25 and for those purposes fulcrumed between its ends to the rear face of the plate 9 and provided near its upper end with a tooth 30 in position to engage the notches 26 as they enter into position to receive it. This lever terminates at its lower end in a shoe-like projection 31 connected by a spring 32 with the plate and carrying a stop-stu 33 to project through the slot 22 for the coin-arresting purpose hereinafter explained.

A bell-crank lever 34 is fulcrumed adjacent to its shorter arm at 35 on a bearinglug projecting from the back of the plate 9 and extends across the lever 29 to another lug 36 on the plate carrying a headed stopstud 37' to project through a guide-slot 38 (Fig. 7) in the adjacent end of the bellcrank. The shorter arm of the bell-crank is connected by a spring 39 with a lug 40 on the plate; and beyond the shorter arm an extension of the bell-crank carries pivotally a stud 41 to work in an opening through the plate at the center of the display-opening 14 in the face-plate 10, the outer end of the stud being beveled, as shown, on its side nearest the chute-section 18. In guideloops 42 and 43 alining on the rear face of the plate 9 is a vertically-movable springsupported push-bar 44, into the path of the lower end of which the shoe 31 tends to project under the ret-ractive force of the spring 32. On the rear face of the push-bar is a depending stop-arm 45, reaching short of the lowerend of the bar to extend over the bellcrank 34, whose controlling-spring 39 tends to maintain it in the path of the arm to prevent depression of the push-bar. A springpressed stop-finger 46 is pivotally supported on the push-bar between its guideloops to abut against the shoulder of the notch in the upper end of the lever 29, as and for the purpose hereinafter described.

A cam-like lug 27 projects from the front side of the finger 27 near its free end, through a slot 47 in the plate 9 to extend, when the finger is in the lowered position shown in Figs. 3 and 5, into the path of the star-wheel points, to be lifted or tripped thereby from obstructing movement of the lever 29 under the retractive force of the spring 32 to enter the tooth 30 into a notch 26.

The operation is as follows with the parts, at the start, assumed to be in the condition represented in Fig. 3, wherein the plunger 44 (the function of which is to be understood to be that of actuating, by its depres-' sion, in any suitable manner the delivery mechanism of a vending or analogous machine surmounted by or equipped with my improved device) is raised by its controlling spring and is locked against depression by abutment of the finger 46 against the upper end of the lever 29: By inserting into the opening 12 a proper coin 48 (Fig.2), it rolls down the chute-section 18 and lodges in the path of the pusher-finger 20 against the spring-stop 17. By then manipulating the handle 21 to slide the finger 20 against the coin, the latter is pushed past the yielding stop 17 (which prevents its return) and past the projecting end of the spring pressed stud 41 to centralize the coin therewith and leave it under display at the opening 14. v In passing the stud 41 the coin forced it backwardly to turn the obstruction presented by the bell-crank 34 out of the path of the depending arm45 of the pushbar 44. The movement of the coin, moreover, forced it against the star-wheel in its path to turn that wheel and thereby press another point thereon against the cam-lug 27 to raise the finger 27 out of the notch in the upper end of the lever 29, thus permitting the spring 32 to turn the lever against the edge of the rotating wheel 25 and snap its tooth 30 into the notch 26 brought coincident therewith to lock the wheel 25 and prevent another coin, if inserted before depressing the push-bar 44, from operating the device. With the lever 29 thus retracted from the path of the finger 46 the push-bar may be depressed to effect delivery from the vending machine. In depressing the push-bar, it encounters the shoe 31, as shown in Fig. 4; and the continued depression causes it in clearing the shoe for attaining the position represented in Fig. 5, which is the delivery-actuating position, to turn the lever 29, against its spring-resistance, in the direction which withdraws the upper end of the lever from the free end of the finger 27, thereby permitting the latter to drop into the notch on that end of the lever and thus bring the cam-lug 27 again into the path of the star-wheel points. When the operation releases the push-bar, itrises to its normal operative position and brings the finger 46 against the upper end of the lever, to the position shown in Fig. 3 for locking the push-rod against depression until another coin is inserted into the device; and the described drop of the finger 27 by engaging its free end with the notch in the upper end of the lever 29, looks the latter against the tendency of its controlling spring 32 to turn it in the direction to enter the tooth into a notch 26 in the wheel 25. The mechanism of the device is thus restored to the condition in which the described op erations may be repeated upon inserting another coin. The next coin inserted and actuated in the manner described of the first, in attaining the display-position at 14, pushes the first-used coin into the chute-section 18 wherein it is arrested by the stop 33; but when a third coin is used to operate the device, pushing the second-used coin into the chute-section 18 the subsequent tripping of the lever 29 by depressing the push-bar against its shoe 31, takes the stop 33 out of the path of the first coinin the discharge-end of the chute and permits that coin to drop into the usual receptacle provided to receive it in the machine. Thus, as will be seen, with the device in regular operation, there-may always be two coins in the chute With the one last inserted lodged at the display-opening 14 to enable it to serve as a detector in the event of its being spurious.

Should the attempt be made to operate the device fraudulently by means of a washer, or a pasteboard or other disk thinner than a coin proper for the use therein, in the case of a washer, while the slide-finger will push it over the stud 41, when the opening in its center registers with the stud the latter will project into the opening and thus fail to hold the bell-crank 34 out of the path of the arm 45 and thus cause it to obstruct depression of the push-bar 44, thereby preventing the latter from operating. The same result ensues if a disk thinner than a proper coin be used, inasmuch as it is insufliciently thick, in pressing against the stud 41 when centralized therewith, to force it backwardly far enough to turn the bell-crank out of its obstructing position. In either case the fraudulent medium is left exposed at the opening 14 to enable the operator to be detected and tend to deter such fraudulent attempts to operate the machine. These spurious media obviously do not prevent subsequent operation of the device with a proper coin, which dislodges them in the way herein described that one coin dislodges the coin preceding it.

The important functions of my improved device are those of locking the push-bar, or the like, against depression until a suitable coin, by inserting it into the device removes, in the display-position of the coin, the bellcrank from obstructing depression of the push-bar and is caused to actuate tripping means to unlock the bar-locking mechanism, which is re-set by depressing the bar to again lock it when raised and restore the tripping mechanism to condition to be again actuated through the medium of the nextinserted coin; and while the mechanisms shown and described for performing these functions are believed to be best for the purpose, they may be variously modified and arranged without departure from my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination of a pushbar, a coin-chute, a spring-pressed obstruction normally in the path of said bar and having a stud projecting into the coin-path through said chute to be actuated by a coin pressing flatwise against it to withdraw said obstruction, push-bar locking mechanism, coin-tripped means cooperating with said mechanism to unlock it by the coin in passing through said chute, and a pusher-finger for working a coin in the chute.

2. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination of a pushbar, a coin-chute, a spring-pressed obstruction normally in the path of said bar and having a stud projecting into the coin-path through said chute to be actuated by a coin pressing flatwise against it to withdraw said obstruct-ion, push-bar locking mechanism extending into the path of said bar to be re-set by depressing said bar, coin-tripped means cooperating with said mechanism to unlock it by the coin in passing through said chute, and a pusher-finger for working a coin in the chute.

3. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination with a casing having a coin-insertion opening and a coin-display opening, of a push-bar, a coinchute extending from said insertion-opening past said display-opening, a spring-pressed obstruction normally in the path of said bar and having a stud projecting at the displayopening into the coin-path through said chute to be actuated by a coin under display, pressing flatwise against it, to withdraw said obstruction, push-bar locking mechanism, coin-tripped means cooperating with said mechanism to unlock it by the coin in passing through said chute, and a pusherfinger for working a coin in the chute.

4. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination of a pushbar, a coin-chute, a spring-pressed obstruction normally in the path of said bar and having a stud projecting into the coin-path through said chute to be actuated by a coin pressing flatwise against it to withdraw said obstruction, push-bar locking mechanism including a spring-pressed lever normally locking said bar against depression and having a projection in the path of said bar for re-setting the locking-lever into its barlocking position, coin-tripped means cooperating with said lever to unlock it by the coin in passing through said chute, and a pusherfinger for working a coin in the chute.

5. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination of a pushbar,a coin-chute, a spring-pressed lever normally in the path of said bar and having a stud projecting into the coin-path through said chute to be actuated by a coin pressing fiat-wise against it to turn the lever out of said bar-path, push-bar locking-mechanism comprising a spring-pressed finger on the bar and a spring-pressed lever normally extending at its upper end into the path of said finger to lock the bar and having a projection on its opposite end in the path of said bar for re-setting the locking-lever into its bar-locking position, coin-tripped means cooperating with said 1ocking-leverto unlock it by the coin in passing through said chute, and a pusher-finger for working a coin in the chute.

6. In a coin-controlled device of the character described, the combination of a pushbar carrying a spring-pressed finger, a cointo be actuated by a coin pressing fiatwise against it to turn the lever out of said barpath, a spring-pressed locking lever ful- CIUIIIQC]. between its ends to extend at one end normally into the path of said finger and having a shoe on its opposite end in the path of said bar for resetting the lockinglever into its bar-locking posit-ion, a tooth projecting from the locking-ever, a notched Wheel cooperating with said tooth, a star- Wheel on the axis of said notched Wheel and extending at its points into said coin-path, a spring-pressed finger cooperating wlth. saidlocking-lever and having a lug projecting into the path of said Wheel-points, and a pusher-finger for Working a coin in the chute, for the purpose set forth.

7. A coin-controlled device of the character described, comprising, in combination, a casing provided With a coin-insertion opening and a coin-display opening, a plate in the casing carrying the operating mechanism of the device, a spring-supported push-bar carrying a spring-pressed finger and a depending arm, a com-chute extending from said insertion-opening past said display-opening, a spring-pressed lever normally in the path of said arm and having a stud projecting through the plate at said display-opening, a spring-pressed lockinglever fulcrunied between its ends to extend at one end into the/path of said finger and at its opposite end into the path of said bar, a tooth projecting from the locking-lever, a notched Wheel journaled on one side of said plate to cooperate with said tooth, a star- Wheel on the opposite side of said plate, said Wheels having a common axis, a springpressed finger engaging With the upper end of said locking-lever and having a lug projecting from it through said plate into the path of the star-Wheel, and a spring-retracted handle-equipped pusher-finger on said plate for Working a coin in the chute, for the purpose set forth.

HERBERT S. MILLS. In the presence of- A. U. THoRmN, R. A. SCHAEFER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommissionerof Patents,

Washington, D. 0. 

